Key Notes
- Xbox Series X/S US unit sales fell 27% year over year in September, while PS5 units rose 22% and the broader console market declined 3%.
- Hardware spending tells a different story, with Xbox down 2% and PS5 up 43%, so revenue changes should not be confused with consoles sold.
- Piscatella points to Wolverine as PS5’s main September driver, while GTA VI’s shared November launch remains a future test for both platforms.
Xbox Series X/S unit sales in the United States fell 27% year over year in September, according to Circana, leaving Microsoft heading toward Grand Theft Auto VI’s launch without the hardware rebound seen at PlayStation. PS5 unit sales rose 22% over the same period.
The contrast raises a question for November: can Rockstar’s next game bring more people into Xbox’s console business, or will Sony capture more of the demand? GTA VI is coming to both platforms, but September’s figures do not show a shared boost.
Units and Revenue Tell Different Stories
Circana analyst Mat Piscatella’s hardware figures show total US console unit sales falling 3% in September. PS5 gained ground while Xbox Series declined 27% and Nintendo Switch 2 fell 14%.
Xbox’s console unit sales also reached their lowest September level on record, according to Piscatella’s summary. The previous low was set a year earlier. That is a September comparison, rather than a claim that this was the smallest month of Xbox sales across all seasons.
Spending moved differently. Xbox Series hardware dollar sales fell only 2%, while PS5 hardware spending rose 43%. The spending data measure money paid for hardware, whereas unit sales count consoles. Price changes and the mix of models sold can make those measures diverge.
| Platform | Unit Sales | Dollar Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Xbox Series X/S | Down 27% | Down 2% |
| PlayStation 5 | Up 22% | Up 43% |
We previously covered PS5’s increase ahead of GTA VI. These are US retail-market results, not worldwide shipments, lifetime install-base figures or Sony’s and Microsoft’s company-wide revenue.
Wolverine Complicates the GTA VI Narrative
Piscatella has argued that weekly sales patterns point to Marvel’s Wolverine as the main driver of PS5’s September improvement, with NBA 2K27 and anticipation for GTA VI also likely contributing. That is a more qualified explanation than attributing the entire increase to Rockstar’s game.
Wolverine was September’s best-selling game in Circana’s full-game dollar-sales ranking, while NBA 2K27 finished second and became the year’s best-seller to date. Those releases provide an immediate software backdrop to Sony’s hardware gains before GTA VI itself reaches stores.
The analyst also questioned why Xbox Series sales declined if GTA VI were primarily responsible for the PS5 increase, given that the same game is coming to Microsoft’s consoles. His comparison challenges a simple explanation; it does not establish that no one bought a PS5 early for GTA VI.
Nor does the dataset identify each buyer’s motivation. It cannot tell us how many people upgraded for Wolverine, bought a console for basketball, or decided to prepare for November’s release.
Can GTA VI Change Xbox’s Hardware Trend?
Rockstar’s official site lists November 19, 2026 for GTA VI on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S. It also prominently carries PlayStation’s preferred-platform marketing. That visibility gives Sony a clear place in the campaign, while the platform listing confirms that Xbox owners are included in the launch.
The marketing does not supply comparative performance measurements or establish how much of September’s hardware movement it caused. Claims about the best console for graphics require more evidence than a promotional message.
For Microsoft, the next test is whether demand for GTA VI translates into additional console purchases as launch approaches. We have reported on Xbox’s plans to invest more in consoles, but that longer-term strategy is separate from the performance of the current Series X/S lineup.
October and November’s hardware reports will provide a better view of the run-up and launch period. September establishes the starting position: PS5 is gaining units, Xbox is selling fewer, and a major shared release has yet to show how much it can change that balance.
